To Say These Words

Chapter Three

"Your Diet Coke," Mark announced as he entered the living room once again.

"Oh, thanks," Rachel responded, taking the cold glass from his hand. After her day at work, she decided she needed to see Mark. She had found his apartment, now she was seated upon his sofa.

"So, what is it that you needed to talk to me about?" Mark asked. He sensed Rachel's discomfort as her eyes scanned his apartment.

Rachel leaned forward on his brown sofa, placing her drink on the coffee table in front of her knees. She leaned back against the cushions once more, and then spoke.

"I don't think I can do this anymore," Rachel stated, watching as Mark's expression twisted in confusion.

"You can't do what, exactly?" Mark asked, hoping he was interpreting her statement the wrong way.

"I can't do this to Ross," Rachel clarified. "I can't use you to get him back. It's not fair to any one of us."

Mark set his drink down as well, shifting in his chair. Rachel could see the gears turning in his mind; she could tell he was formulating an argument.

"Please, don't think of this that way," Mark pleaded. "I want to be with you," He said, looking at Rachel intensely.

"I don't know," Rachel admitted. She remembered Ross' gesture of returning the t-shirt, she remembered his hurt expression - they were two memories that wouldn't disappear.

"Just hear me out," Mark suggested, holding her gaze.

"Okay, I'm listening," Rachel stated, curious to hear what he would say.

"I think it's best to let go of Ross. And I say this with only your feelings in mind. He cheated on you, he hurt you. Can you really trust that he won't do that again?" Mark explained.

Rachel was about to lose it on Mark, call him out for knowing nothing about Ross to be passing those types of judgements, but, was Mark right?

Why was it she thought she could move on before? It all came down to the fact that she and Ross hurt each other, and that he slept with someone else. They were better as friends. It was better when Ross wasn't possessive or jealous, when she didn't have a relationship and a job to maintain.

If she moved on and he moved on they could be friends again. They could put all the pain and chaos behind them and move on with life. They couldn't keep running in circles, it was getting tiring.

"You really think this is best?" Rachel asked, hoping he'd offer some form of reassurance.

"He deserves it Rachel. What happened to the plan we had?" Mark said.

"I guess I just wanted to make sure I was making the right choice," Rachel stated, softly.

"I promise you, this is for the better. Ross will move on," Mark defended. He couldn't lose Rachel; if he had to fight to make her forget her past relationship, he would gladly do so. Once he succeeded in helping her, he knew they would be great together.

"He did say he was going to ask some woman out from the museum..." Rachel remembered. With that, it came flooding back to her, their argument. Mark had a point. She had made Ross realize that she had moved on, in turn he was moving on as well. She had set out to move on, hadn't she? Wasn't she supposed to make Ross jealous and move on at the same time?

She had to remember that it wouldn't be easy to get back together. First, there was the matter of settling their dispute, and then they would have Mark and this other woman to deal with.

"Exactly. He's going to meet someone else," Mark exclaimed, before he calmed into a serious tone. "Please, Rachel, give me a chance to show you how much I care about you. I guarantee I'll help you get over him."